Hang in there. A lot of Mav and Comet hoods experienced rust at the front edge, due to the hood lip trim. It became a habit of mine to drill drain holes in the hood and trunk trims to keep condensation from piling up.

Another tip ... There were 5 Mavs made for each Comet. That may seem to stretch the odds, but it is my theory that you will find higher concentrations of Comets near bigger metro areas. Back in the day, Ford dealers were everywhere, but Mercury dealers were centered in the bigger towns. So hunting near bigger cities should be more productive.

Comet parts are harder to come up with in general. In twenty five years of hoarding, I have only come across three decent (and that means lightly pitted) 71-72 Comet thin front bumpers, and a couple of pretzeled ones.

How bad is your hood? It may be worth extra effort to save it if possible. I have a trunk lid that I took off my car because of some rust issues that looked bad in the 1990s. Now I look at it, and think it should be saved.
Let me know if there are other Comet-specific things you need. I don't have a ton of parts here, but I tend to surprise myself when going through the stash.

Thanks Captain Comet. My hood was gone at the front corner. Gave it up for scrap metal like a year ago. Still looking. Wish a good company made aftermarket ones, the fiberglass ones I've found have horrible reviews. Might break me and force me to go with a maverick hood, we'll see. I like the Comet front better.

Front lip trim and emblem still on that hood, too. Looks good from the pictures. If it is solid, that is a good deal at $200. It is a bit suspect that the picture of the underside has the inside of the nose cropped out. I would ask for detailed pic of that because it is a common rust area. If there are any issues in that area, that hood should still be a good one for repair.

The hood trims aren't easy to get, same for a good emblem. You might be able to sell those if not needed and make some bucks back. I've taken two emblems apart to combine a good lens into a body that isn't all pitted up.

There was someone down here trying for a couple years to sell a green Comet hood for $500. It finally came of CL lately. It looked suspiciously like the one with front lip rust that I took off of my car around 1995. I always wondered....

Long shot, but you might try to reach out to Chuck Stalnaker who used to be on here. Maverick connection, I believe. He had quite a few Comet hoods. He was located down in Southern, WV. If, I had an extra, I would help, but I only have the one for me car. If you have any other Comet parts, you might need let me know. I might have something. I'm just south of you near Morgantown, WV. - Matt

Frank.....you just proved that you either have body shop skills, or a person doesnt need skill. I think you have skill, just lack a wealth of experience is my guess. But.....now I want to know how you treated that rust....did you dip the front of that hood in something??

Frank.....you just proved that you either have body shop skills, or a person doesnt need skill. I think you have skill, just lack a wealth of experience is my guess. But.....now I want to know how you treated that rust....did you dip the front of that hood in something??

Looks good. Mine had a big hole. lol. I'll continue my hunt for a hood. Very difficult it seems

Click to expand...

I have a pretty good 1974 Comet hood that I will sell, but the problem is that I'm in Central Arkansas. The emblem on the front is no good. The front chrome piece looks pretty good. I don't think there are any dents in the trim or the hood, but will have to wash it to make sure. It is pretty cold here so it might be a few days before I can wash it and take pictures.
I just took the front chrome trim off to check for rust on the front lip and it looks pretty decent. There is one small rust through spot. I will take all the pictures you want to make sure you can see what condition the hood is in.
I would sell the hood for a fair price for both of us. The only problem is getting it to you. I don't think I want to take on packing a hood for shipping.
Best case scenario would be someone from this community making a trip from around here to close to where you are.
It just occurred to me that maybe it is against the rules to make a post for something to sell in this part of the forum. If so, I apologize and moderators please delete my post.
My intent was to make mywifeisawesome aware that there is a hood available.